Month: December 2018

UIS faculty bring an international experience to students and the greater Springfield community through their professional expertise, research collaborations, and life experiences.

Professor Adriana Crocker of the Political Science Department at the University of Illinois at Springfield exemplifies the international teacher-scholar. She was selected a Presidential Fellow for the University of Illinois in 2017, the first such UIS faculty to receive that honor. Professor Crocker is an award-winning teacher who specializes in Latin American politics, with a strong background in international law and women’s rights, and she worked over the past year to help the U of I System expand its global reach.

In particular, Dr. Crocker helped lead a study abroad experience to Cuba, one of the first US teams to travel to that country in 50 years. Conor McKenzie is a senior political studies major who described the benefits of the Cuba trip.

Professor Crocker also directs the Model United Nations at UIS, an engagement experience for students of all majors who work as a team to prepare and present at the National Model United Nations in New York.

All programs are free and open to the public. Dinners require a reservation.

Professor Crocker, who joined the UIS faculty in 2006, is a professor of political science and teaches comparative politics and international relations courses with an emphasis on Latin American politics. In 2016, she received the distinguished Pearson Faculty Award, which recognizes a faculty member whose performance exemplifies UIS’s commitment to excellence in teaching and who stands among the very best teachers on campus. Her research focuses on the role of gender quotas and other institutional mechanisms in serving the interests of women in Latin America. Her 2017 book, Gender Quotas in South America’s Big Three: National and Subnational Impacts, focuses on policies intended to promote the inclusion of women in Latin America’s legislatures and their effects. She has a law degree from the University of La Plata Argentina and a Ph.D. from Northern Illinois University.